Short answer
No. Hijab means covering the hair, and a wig is itself a display of hair, so it does not fulfil the covering. A wig made of human hair is also haram in itself. A hat or turban counts as hijab only if it covers all the hair, the ears, the neck and the chest.
A wig does not count as covering the awrah, since the purpose of hijab is to hide the hair and adornment. Attaching human hair is haram. Synthetic hair worn for the husband or for a medical reason is permitted by many Hanafi scholars, but it is not a hijab.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
The Quran tells women to draw their head covers over their chests and not to show their adornment. A wig in public does the opposite: it gives the look of uncovered hair, which is exactly what hijab hides. Some women in workplaces or countries hostile to hijab look for this solution, and the answer is clear that it does not meet the obligation.
The Prophet ﷺ also cursed the woman who joins hair to hair and the one who asks for it to be done. The Hanafi scholars apply this to human hair extensions and wigs. Synthetic hair is more lenient in the Hanafi school, but only for the home or a medical need. See hair extensions and wigs.
Alternatives when a full hijab is hard:
- Turban-style wraps with a high-neck top can work if they cover all the hair, the ears and the neck.
- A hat or beanie alone leaves the neck and ears out, so it is not enough.
- After chemotherapy or hair loss: a wig at home for your own comfort and your husband is fine; outside, cover it with hijab as normal.
- Hostile settings: if you truly cannot wear hijab, keep the obligation in your heart, cover as much as you can, and seek a way out. Do not call a wig hijab.
See is hijab mandatory and the hijab guide.
The evidence
Quran, Surah An-Noor 24:31
وَقُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنَٰتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَٰرِهِنَّ وَيَحْفَظْنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا ۖ وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَىٰ جُيُوبِهِنَّ ۖ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا لِبُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ أَخَوَٰتِهِنَّ أَوْ نِسَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَٰنُهُنَّ أَوِ ٱلتَّٰبِعِينَ غَيْرِ أُو۟لِى ٱلْإِرْبَةِ مِنَ ٱلرِّجَالِ أَوِ ٱلطِّفْلِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَمْ يَظْهَرُوا۟ عَلَىٰ عَوْرَٰتِ ٱلنِّسَآءِ ۖ وَلَا يَضْرِبْنَ بِأَرْجُلِهِنَّ لِيُعْلَمَ مَا يُخْفِينَ مِن زِينَتِهِنَّ ۚ وَتُوبُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعًا أَيُّهَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ ﴿٣١﴾
And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers, their brothers' sons, their sisters' sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.
Hijab is a cover over the head and chest, which a wig is not.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5934
Sahih... لعن الله الواصلة والمستوصلة ...
"Allah has cursed the woman who joins hair and the woman who has her hair joined."
Adding human hair to one's own is forbidden.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Hazr wa al-Ibaha, on joining hair (wasl). Joining human hair is forbidden; hair of animals or synthetic material is treated more leniently.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.